"McCarthyism is Americanism with its sleeves rolled." ...Senator Joseph McCarthy.
Russia may have helped the former National Security Agency contractor Edward Snowden to reveal details of surveillance programmes and escape US authorities last year, the chairman of the House intelligence committee claimed on Sunday.
Mike Rogers, a Republican representative from Michigan, interviewed by NBC’s Meet the Press, said Snowden was “a thief whom we believe had some help”, and added that there was an “ongoing” investigation into whether Russia had aided Snowden.
“I believe there's questions to be answered there,” Rogers said. “I don't think it was a gee-whiz luck event that he ended up in Moscow under the handling of the [Russian intelligence service] FSB.”
Rogers added: “Let me just say this. I believe there’s a reason he ended up in the hands, the loving arms, of an FSB agent in Moscow. I don’t think that’s a coincidence. ...TheGuardian
Our Enemies, the Reds, are doing it again. Or so Mike Rogers, the firm-jawed Michigan Republican, would have it. He is joined by Diane Feinstein, Senate Intelligence chair and "nuke-em" Democrat, who wants NSA to remain unleashed. There might be, possibly, a threat-a-minute out there.
On Sunday, Feinstein said: "I think that's a very difficult thing. Because the whole purpose of this program is to provide instantaneous information to be able to disrupt any plot that may be taking place." ...TheGuardian
As always when it comes to those clever commies terrorists, they don't leave fingerprints but they're everywhere:
Rogers did not give any supporting evidence for his claims, but suggested Snowden “used methods beyond his technical capabilities" and had help with his travel arrangements. ...TheGuardian
That "help with travel arrangements" -- all by itself -- demands a vigorous response, wouldn't you think?
Let us please remember that a real threat, a bumbling threat which our federal government could have prevented, was not interrupted -- in spite of the capabilities of our intelligence and law enforcement agencies.
They screwed up ...badly... in the run-up to 9.11. So did the then-president. So did Congress. That's no excuse for all three branches of government to limit our freedoms. Instead, it's time for us to limit theirs.
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Diane Feinstein will do what she can to preserve the status quo ante according to The Hill.
Senate Intelligence Committee Chairwoman Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.) predicted Sunday that lawmakers who favored shutting down the bulk collection of telephone metadata would not be successful in their efforts as Congress weighs potential reforms to the nation’s controversial intelligence programs.
“I don’t believe so,” Feinstein said during an appearance on NBC's “Meet the Press.” “The president has very clearly said that he wants to keep the capability… So I think we would agree with him. I know a dominant majority of the — everybody, virtually, except two or three, on the Senate Intelligence Committee would agree with that.” ...TheHill
Ugly. Feinstein admits her motivation is America's poor image in much of the rest of the world.
“A lot of the privacy people, perhaps, don't understand that we still occupy the role of the Great Satan. New bombs are being devised. New terrorists are emerging, new groups, actually, a new level of viciousness,” Feinstein said. “We need to be prepared. I think we need to do it in a way that respects people's privacy rights.” ...TheHill
Or we could just stop being the Great Satan, a solution that is perhaps too sensible and humane for the Senate Intelligence Committee.
